Posts tagged ‘Connecticut’

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) — A jury has acquitted a convicted felon in the rape of a Sacred Heart University student. Jurors announced their not guilty verdict Wednesday in the trial of 39-year-old Alfonso “Fonzie” Reid. He was acquitted of first-degree sexual assault and first-degree unlawful restraint. Reid was accused of raping the 19-year-old student on…

HARTFORD (CBS Connecticut) — Hartford Police have arrested a driver after an early-morning incident in which a Hartford policeman fired three shots at the man’s vehicle. No one was hurt.

Police say one officer stopped a driver on Mahl Avenue at about 2:30 a.m., after seeing the vehicle speeding and driving erratically in the snow. The driver stopped only momentarily, then began backing up toward the officer before continuing forward.

Then, police say a second officer, identified as Sean Perez, encountered the vehicle and, fearing for his own safety, fired three shots which hit the front end of the car. The driver stopped. He’s identified as 32-year-old Sadiki Blake of Hartford, charged with reckless driving, disobeying the sgnal of an officer and criminal attempt to commit assault. Bond was set at half a million dollars. Police say he has 21 previous Hartford arrests.

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) _ One of two former East Haven officers convicted of violating Latinos’ civil rights was sentenced Tuesday to 2 1/2 years in prison.

David Cari was sentenced in federal court in Hartford, the U.S. attorney’s office said. The sentencing of the other officer, Dennis Spaulding, was continued until Thursday.

A jury convicted them in October of conspiring to violate the constitutional rights of Hispanics, making false arrests and filing false reports. Spaulding also was convicted of using unreasonable force.

They were among four East Haven officers charged in 2012 with harassing and abusing Hispanics. The other two officers pleaded guilty and await sentencing.

Cari asked for a three-month prison sentence, while Spaulding is seeking home confinement and community service. Both were allowed to retire from the force.

Prosecutors sought multi-year prison sentences to send a message that no one, not even police, are above the law.

NEW BRITAIN (CBS Connecticut) — New Britain police have obtained a warrant for a suspect in the hit-and-run assault of a New Britain policeman Sunday night. Police are looking for information on the whereabouts of 19-year-old Jaheem Snype of Grove Street in New Britain. They say members of the public should not approach him, but should call police immediately.

Police began looking for a stolen car Sunday evening. The officer who radioed in that he had found it behind a building on Wilcox Street was found a short time later on the street; he had been struck and dragged and the driver had left the scene. The vehicle was found Monday morning, abandoned on Sandy Brook Drive.

The officer is in stable condition after undergoing nine hours of surgery.

Bridgeport police say a Bridgeport man faces kidnaping. weapons., assalt and other charges after forcing his girlfriend into his vehicle and heading south on Interstate 95 overnight. Police say the woman, who was with four friends at the time, was trying to end an abusive relationship with 23-year-old Joshua Vega when he showed a gun.

Police say he forced her into his vehicle and headed south on Interstate 95, where Stamford Police spotted him and pulled the vehicle over near exit 5. Vega was arrested and the woman was treated for her injuries.

Police say Vega was headed for the Bronx.

Chief Joseph Gaudette Jr. praised the police response, saying he believes the woman’s life was saved by the officers who compiled the information about the kidnapping and shared it with neighboring departments.